She added that friends on the Facebook page, “Derek Funk is Missing,” are speculating that he “took off to find himself or something.

“I don’t think he’d ever do that,” she said. “I think he would tell us. He always told us the truth. Unless Kevin and I are way off base; we may be wrong.”

The Funks are coping with the disappearance the best they can — trying to live a normal life. Brett Funk, Derek’s younger brother, is attending Pellissippi State Community College, and his parents are going about their day-to-day tasks.

“He’s still part of our family,” Tricia said. “We don’t ignore it. We talk about him a lot. We have good days and we have our bad days.”

Derek, a 2009 Oak Ridge High School graduate, turned 20 in October. He is 5 feet, 11 inches tall, and weighs about 130 pounds. He has blond hair and blue eyes. He has several distinguishing tattoos. His pickup truck tag number is TN 422-HHJ.

“I feel like somebody out there knows something,” Tricia said. “Somebody has to know something. I don’t think people just vanish from the face of the earth.”

If anyone has information about Derek Funk, call the KPD at (865) 215-7212 , or the Funks at (865) 483-1804 .